T20 World Cup: West Indies smash 254 to flatten Zimbabwe in Wankhede Super 8 run-fest

Mumbai, 24 June – Shimron Hetmyer turned two Zimbabwean lapses into a personal highlight reel, blasting 85 off 34 balls to propel West Indies to 254 for six – the second-highest total ever recorded at a T20 World Cup – and set up a 107-run demolition of Zimbabwe in the opening Super Eight contest at a heaving Wankhede Stadium.

The 29-year-old left-hander, whose brief throughout the tournament has been to attack from the outset, arrived in the third over and immediately flicked his first delivery to the deep-midwicket fence. Zimbabwe’s new-ball pair of Richard Ngarava and Blessing Muzarabani briefly kept the lid on, restricting the Caribbean side to 55 for two after the six-over Powerplay, but the innings detonated once Hetmyer began to free his arms.

Dropped on successive occasions by Tashinga Musekiwa – first a straightforward chance at long-leg off Muzarabani, then a skier to deep-midwicket off Brad Evans when Hetmyer had 70 – the Guyanese batter responded with five sixes in six legitimate deliveries. He advanced from 23 off 13 balls to a 19-ball half-century, eclipsing his own 22-ball fifty against Scotland at Eden Gardens earlier in the competition and establishing a new West Indian record for the fastest fifty in T20 World Cup history.

Hetmyer’s assault spanned the eighth and ninth overs: back-to-back sixes off Graeme Cremer preceded three consecutive maximums against Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza, a nine-ball sequence that cost 33 runs and tilted the contest irrevocably. By the time he holed out in the 14th over, Hetmyer had struck seven fours and seven sixes, with 70 of his 85 runs arriving in boundaries. His tournament tally now stands at 17 sixes, drawing him level with Nicholas Pooran’s single-edition record set in 2024. West Indies finished with 19 sixes in their 20 overs, equalling the competition record for most maximums in an innings.

Zimbabwe’s chase never gained traction. Left-arm spinners Gudakesh Motie and Akeal Hosein shared seven wickets, conceding 28 runs apiece, as the African side were bundled out for 147 in 17.4 overs. Motie’s four-wicket burst and Hosein’s three ensured the result long before the final rites, sending an estimated 20,000 spectators home having witnessed one of the most explosive batting displays of the tournament.

The victory lifts West Indies to the top of their Super Eight group on net run-rate, while Zimbabwe must regroup quickly to keep their semi-final hopes alive.